For a split-second, Kyle Fuller had the Bears’ season-opening victory in his hands Sunday night at Lambeau Field, but it bounced out of his grasp.

With the Bears holding a precarious six-point lead against the Packers with 2 minutes, 39 seconds to play, the Bears cornerback was in position to intercept quarterback Aaron Rodgers. He leaned forward to make the catch on a short pass attempt but dropped it.

Advertisement

In frustration, he flung the football and then sat on the field for a few seconds to absorb the missed opportunity.

Many Bears played a part in the massive collapse that allowed the Packers to score 24 second-half points on the way to a 24-23 victory. The 20-point comeback victory was the Packers’ second-largest ever at Lambeau Field, behind only a 21-point comeback against the Saints in 1989.

“The whole team got lazy,” Bears safety Eddie Jackson said. “We got too complacent, especially on the defensive side of the ball. We didn’t finish. We came out the first half swinging. The energy was there. The second half I felt like the energy was low. Everybody got complacent, and we lost focus that we still had a game to finish.”

Jackson was at the center of the Packers’ winning play, two plays after Fuller’s missed opportunity.

He was playing in the middle when Rodgers, with plenty of time to throw, found wide receiver Randall Cobb just behind him. Jackson dived toward the pass but was too far in front to make a tackle. Cobb ran free for the 75-yard, go-ahead touchdown, also leaving outside linebacker Leonard Floyd falling in his wake.

Bears coach Matt Nagy said Monday he thought Jackson was just an inch away from tipping the pass, but there’s still a lesson to be learned.

“We have to stay on top of everything,” Bears defensive backs coach Ed Donatell said. “That’s what we teach him. (Jackson has) a ball-hawking mentality. He’s very effective for us, and he has some real good ball ahead of him. We tell him to stay top shoulder when things break out and plays get extended, and that’s what he’ll do next time.”

It was the last of three second-half touchdown passes by Rodgers, who left the game in the second quarter with a knee injury.

He returned in the third quarter, and he found Packers wide receiver Geronimo Allison for a 39-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter. Allison made a diving catch behind Fuller in the back right corner of the end zone to cut the Bears’ lead to 20-10.

Rodgers zeroed in on wide receiver Davante Adams on the next drive, connecting with him on passes of 51 and 6 yards before a 12-yard touchdown. Bears cornerback Prince Amukamara was in coverage on the first and last plays as the Packers pulled within 20-17.

Afterward, Amukamara took 30 seconds to collect his thoughts when asked about what happened to the defense after a first-half shutout in which the Bears sacked Rodgers and backup quarterback DeShone Kizer twice each and forced two turnovers.

He said he didn’t think the Bears were overly confident at halftime and they weren’t necessarily surprised Rodgers came back in.

Advertisement

“They started going up-tempo and stuff like that,” Amukamara said. “We just couldn’t stop the bleeding. Outside looking in, it looks like we pooped our pants. We just have to finish. Even coming in here, we were saying, ‘We had a good first half; we need to have a better second half.’ We were aware we needed to turn it up in the second half, but for whatever reason, our actions didn’t show up.”

Jackson said coach Matt Nagy’s message after the game was to not point fingers.

“This is on us as a team,” Jackson said. “We have to come back and get better from it. … We have to come out and finish like we’re capable of.”

“All our guys take a hard look at themselves,” Donatell said. “Anytime we have something like that, we look at how can we work that into a drill, practice it and make sure we make that catch the next time.”